[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 52 (Thursday, March 18, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 12965-12968]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-5871]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 25

[Docket No. NM425; Special Conditions No. 25-403-SC]


Special Conditions: Airbus Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 
Series Airplanes; Seats With Non-Traditional, Large, Non-Metallic 
Panels

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Final special conditions; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: These special conditions are issued for the Airbus Model A318, 
A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes. These airplanes will have a 
novel or unusual design feature(s) associated with seats that include 
non-traditional, large, non-metallic panels that would affect 
survivability during a post-crash fire event. The applicable 
airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety 
standards for this design feature. These special conditions contain the 
additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary 
to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the 
existing airworthiness standards.

DATES: The effective date of these special conditions is March 9, 2010. 
We must receive your comments by May 3, 2010.

ADDRESSES: You must mail two copies of your comments to: Federal 
Aviation Administration, Transport Airplane Directorate, Attn: Rules 
Docket (ANM-113), Docket No. NM425, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, 
Washington 98057-3356. You may deliver two copies to the Transport 
Airplane Directorate at the above address. You must mark your comments: 
Docket No. NM425. You can inspect comments in the Rules Docket 
weekdays, except Federal holidays, between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alan Sinclair, FAA, Airframe/Cabin 
Safety Branch, ANM-115, Transport Airplane Directorate, Aircraft 
Certification Service, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, Washington 98057-
3356; telephone (425) 227-2785; facsimile (425) 227-2195; electronic 
mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FAA has determined that notice and 
opportunity for prior public comment hereon are impracticable because 
these procedures would significantly delay issuance of the design 
approval and thus delivery of the affected aircraft. In addition, the 
substance of these special conditions has been subject to the public 
comment process in several prior instances with no substantive comments 
received. The FAA therefore finds that good cause exists for making 
these special conditions effective upon issuance.

Comments Invited

    We invite interested people to take part in this rulemaking by 
sending written comments, data, or views. The most helpful comments 
reference a specific portion of the special conditions, explain the 
reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data. We ask 
that you send us two copies of written comments.
    We will file in the docket all comments we receive, as well as a 
report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA personnel 
about these special conditions. You can inspect the docket before and 
after the comment closing date. If you wish to review the docket in 
person, go to the address in the ADDRESSES section of this preamble 
between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.
    We will consider all comments we receive by the closing date for 
comments. We will consider comments

[[Page 12966]]

filed late if it is possible to do so without incurring expense or 
delay. We may change these special conditions based on the comments we 
receive.
    If you want us to let you know we received your comments on these 
special conditions, send us a pre-addressed, stamped postcard on which 
the docket number appears. We will stamp the date on the postcard and 
mail it back to you.

Background

    On January 15, 2010, Airbus Industrie, 1 Rond Point Maurice 
Bellonte, 31707 Blagnac, Cedex, France, applied for a design change to 
Type Certificate No. A28NM for installation of seats that include non-
traditional, large, non-metallic panels in Airbus Model A318, A319, 
A320, and A321 series airplanes. These airplanes, currently approved 
under Type Certificate No. A28NM, are swept-wing, conventional-tail, 
twin-engine, turbofan-powered, single aisle, medium sized transport 
category airplanes.
    The applicable regulations to airplanes currently approved under 
Type Certificate No. A28NM do not require seats to meet the more 
stringent flammability standards required of large, non-metallic panels 
in the cabin interior. At the time the applicable rules were written, 
seats were designed with a metal frame covered by fabric, not with 
large, non-metallic panels. Seats also met the then recently adopted 
standards for flammability of seat cushions. With the seat design being 
mostly fabric and metal, the contribution to a fire in the cabin had 
been minimized and was not considered a threat. For these reasons, 
seats did not need to be tested to heat release and smoke emission 
requirements.
    Seat designs have now evolved to occasionally include non-
traditional, large, non-metallic panels. Taken in total, the surface 
area of these panels is on the same order as the sidewall and overhead 
stowage bin interior panels. To provide the level of passenger 
protection intended by the airworthiness standards, these non-
traditional, large, non-metallic panels in the cabin must meet the 
standards of Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR), part 25, 
Appendix F, parts IV and V, heat release and smoke emission 
requirements.

Type Certification Basis

    Under the provisions of 14 CFR 21.101 Airbus must show that the 
Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes, as changed, continue 
to meet the applicable provisions of the regulations incorporated by 
reference in Type Certificate No. A28NM, or the applicable regulations 
in effect on the date of application for the change. The regulations 
incorporated by reference in the type certificate are commonly referred 
to as the ``original type certification basis.'' The regulations 
incorporated by reference in Type Certificate No. A28NM are as follows: 
14 CFR part 25, effective February 1, 1965, including Amendments 25-1 
through 25-56; SFAR 27, effective February 1, 1974, including 
Amendments 27-1 through 27-5; and 14 CFR part 36 effective December 1, 
1969, including Amendments 36-1 through 36-12.
    In addition, the certification basis includes other regulations and 
special conditions that are not pertinent to these special conditions.
    If the Administrator finds that the applicable airworthiness 
regulations (i.e., 14 CFR part 25) do not contain adequate or 
appropriate safety standards for the Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 
series airplanes because of a novel or unusual design feature, special 
conditions are prescribed under the provisions of Sec.  21.16.
    In addition to the applicable airworthiness regulations and special 
conditions, the Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes must 
comply with the fuel vent and exhaust emission requirements of 14 CFR 
part 34 and the noise certification requirements of 14 CFR part 36.
    The FAA issues special conditions, as defined in Sec.  11.19, under 
Sec.  11.38 and they become part of the type certification basis under 
Sec.  21.101.
    Special conditions are initially applicable to the model for which 
they are issued. Should the type certificate for that model be amended 
later to include any other model that incorporates the same novel or 
unusual design feature, or should any other model already included on 
the same type certificate be modified to incorporate the same novel or 
unusual design feature, the special conditions would also apply to the 
other model.

Novel or Unusual Design Features

    The Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes will 
incorporate the following novel or unusual design features: These 
models offer interior arrangements that include passenger seats that 
incorporate non-traditional, large, non-metallic panels in lieu of the 
traditional metal frame covered by fabric. The flammability properties 
of these panels have been shown to significantly affect the 
survivability of occupants of the cabin in the case of fire. These 
seats are considered a novel design for transport category airplanes 
that include Amendment 25-61 and Amendment 25-66 in the certification 
basis, and were not considered when those airworthiness standards were 
established.
    The existing regulations do not provide adequate or appropriate 
safety standards for seat designs that incorporate non-traditional, 
large, non-metallic panels. In order to provide a level of safety that 
is equivalent to that provided by the balance of the cabin, additional 
airworthiness standards, in the form of special conditions, are 
necessary. These special conditions supplement Sec.  25.853. The 
requirements contained in these special conditions consist of applying 
the identical test conditions required of all other large panels in the 
cabin, to seats with non-traditional, large, non-metallic panels.

Definition of ``Non-Traditional, Large, Non-Metallic Panel''

    A non-traditional, large, non-metallic panel, in this case, is 
defined as a panel with exposed-surface areas greater than 1.5 square 
feet installed per seat place. The panel may consist of either a single 
component or multiple components in a concentrated area. Examples of 
parts of the seat where these non-traditional panels are installed 
include, but are not limited to: seat backs, bottoms and leg/foot 
rests, kick panels, back shells, credenzas and associated furniture. 
Examples of traditional exempted parts of the seat include: Arm caps, 
armrest close-outs such as end bays and armrest-styled center consoles, 
food trays, video monitors and shrouds.

Clarification of ``Exposed''

    ``Exposed'' is considered to include those panels directly exposed 
to the passenger cabin in the traditional sense, plus those panels 
enveloped such as by a dress cover. Traditional fabrics or leathers 
currently used on seats are excluded from these special conditions. 
These materials must still comply with Sec.  25.853(a) and Sec.  
25.853(c) if used as a covering for a seat cushion, or Sec.  25.853(a) 
if installed elsewhere on the seat. Non-traditional, large, non-
metallic panels covered with traditional fabrics or leathers will be 
tested without their coverings or covering attachments.

Discussion

    In the early 1980s the FAA conducted extensive research on the 
effects of post-crash flammability in the passenger cabin. As a result 
of this research and service experience, we adopted new standards for 
interior surfaces associated with large surface area parts. 
Specifically, the rules require

[[Page 12967]]

measurement of heat release and smoke emission (part 25, Appendix F, 
parts IV and V) for the affected parts. Heat release has been shown to 
have a direct correlation with post-crash fire survival time. Materials 
that comply with the standards (i.e., Sec.  25.853 entitled 
``Compartment interiors'' as amended by Amendment 25-61 and Amendment 
25-66) extend survival time by approximately 2 minutes, over materials 
that do not comply.
    At the time these standards were written, the potential application 
of the requirements of heat release and smoke emission to seats was 
explored. The seat frame itself was not a concern because it was 
primarily made of aluminum and there were only small amounts of non-
metallic materials. It was determined that the overall effect on 
survivability was negligible, whether or not the food trays met the 
heat release and smoke requirements. The requirements, therefore, did 
not address seats. The preambles to both the Notice of Proposed Rule 
Making (NPRM), Notice No. 85-10 (50 FR 15038, April 16, 1985), and the 
Final Rule at Amendment 25-61 (51 FR 26206, July 21, 1986), 
specifically note that seats were excluded ``because the recently-
adopted standards for flammability of seat cushions will greatly 
inhibit involvement of the seats.''
    Subsequently, the Final Rule at Amendment 25-83 (60 FR 6615, March 
6, 1995) clarified the definition of minimum panel size: ``It is not 
possible to cite a specific size that will apply in all installations; 
however, as a general rule, components with exposed-surface areas of 
one square foot or less may be considered small enough that they do not 
have to meet the new standards. Components with exposed-surface areas 
greater than two square feet may be considered large enough that they 
do have to meet the new standards. Those with exposed-surface areas 
greater than one square foot, but less than two square feet, must be 
considered in conjunction with the areas of the cabin in which they are 
installed before a determination could be made.''
    In the late 1990s, the FAA issued Policy Memorandum 97-112-39, 
``Guidance for Flammability Testing of Seat/Console Installations,'' 
October 17, 1997 (http://rgl.faa.gov). That memo was issued when it 
became clear that seat designs were evolving to include large non-
metallic panels with surface areas that would impact survivability 
during a cabin fire event, comparable to partitions or galleys. The 
memo noted that large surface area panels must comply with heat release 
and smoke emission requirements, even if they were attached to a seat. 
If the FAA had not issued such policy, seat designs could have been 
viewed as a loophole to the airworthiness standards that would result 
in an unacceptable decrease in survivability during a cabin fire event.
    In October of 2004, an issue was raised regarding the appropriate 
flammability standards for passenger seats that incorporated non-
traditional, large, non-metallic panels in lieu of the traditional 
metal covered by fabric. The Seattle Aircraft Certification Office and 
Transport Standards Staff reviewed this design and determined that it 
represented the kind and quantity of material that should be required 
to pass the heat release and smoke emissions requirements. We have 
determined that special conditions would be promulgated to apply the 
standards defined in Sec.  25.853(d) to seats with large non-metallic 
panels in their design.

Applicability

    As discussed above, these special conditions are applicable to 
Airbus Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes. Although the 
heat release and smoke testing requirements of Sec.  25.853 per 
Appendix F, parts IV and V, are not part of the part 25 certification 
basis for the Airbus Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes, 
these special conditions are applicable if the airplanes are in 14 CFR 
part 121 service. Part 121 requires applicable interior panels to 
comply with Sec.  25.853, Appendix F, parts IV and V, regardless of the 
certification basis. It is not our intent to require seats with large 
non-metallic panels to meet Sec.  25.853, Appendix F, parts IV and V, 
if they are installed in cabins of airplanes that otherwise are not 
required to meet these standards. Should Airbus apply at a later date 
for a change to the type certificate to include another model 
incorporating the same novel or unusual design feature, the special 
conditions would apply to that model as well.

Conclusion

    This action affects only certain novel or unusual design features 
on Airbus Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes. It is not 
a rule of general applicability.
    The substance of these special conditions has been subjected to the 
notice and comment period in several prior instances and has been 
derived without substantive change from those previously issued. It is 
unlikely that prior public comment would result in a significant change 
from the substance contained herein. Therefore, the FAA has determined 
that prior public notice and comment are unnecessary and good cause 
exists for adopting these special conditions upon issuance. The FAA is 
requesting comments to allow interested persons to submit views that 
may not have been submitted in response to the prior opportunities for 
comment described above.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 25

    Aircraft, Aviation safety, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

0
The authority citation for these special conditions is as follows:

    Authority:  49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701, 44702, 44704.

The Special Conditions

0
Accordingly, pursuant to the authority delegated to me by the 
Administrator, the following special conditions are issued as part of 
the type certification basis for Airbus Model A318, A319, A320, and 
A321 series airplanes.
    1. Except as provided in paragraph 3 of these special conditions, 
compliance with heat release and smoke emission testing requirements 
per 14 CFR part 25, Sec.  25.853 Appendix F, parts IV and V, is 
required for seats that incorporate non-traditional, large, non-
metallic panels that may either be a single component or multiple 
components in a concentrated area in their design.
    2. The applicant may designate up to and including 1.5 square feet 
of non-traditional, non-metallic panel material per seat place that 
does not have to comply with special condition Number 1, above. A 
triple seat assembly may have a total of 4.5 square feet excluded on 
any portion of the assembly (e.g., outboard seat place 1 square foot, 
middle 1 square foot, and inboard 2.5 square feet).
    3. Seats do not have to meet the test requirements of 14 CFR part 
25, Appendix F, parts IV and V, when installed in compartments that are 
not otherwise required to meet these requirements. Examples include:
    a. Airplanes with passenger capacities of 19 or less,
    b. Airplanes that do not have Sec.  25.853, Amendment 25-61 or 
later, in their certification basis and do not need to comply with the 
requirements of 14 CFR 121.312, and
    c. Airplanes exempted from Sec.  25.853, Amendment 25-61 or later.
    4. Only airplanes associated with new seat certification programs 
approved after the effective date of these special conditions will be 
affected by the requirements in these special conditions. Previously 
certificated interiors on the existing airplane fleet and follow-on 
deliveries of airplanes

[[Page 12968]]

with previously certificated interiors are not affected.

    Issued in Renton, Washington, on March 9, 2010.
Jeffrey E. Duven,
Acting Manager, Transport Airplane Directorate, Aircraft Certification 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2010-5871 Filed 3-17-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P